Internal-combustion engine.



CHABLES E. DURYEA, OF READING, PENNSYLVANIA.

INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 31, 1911.

Application filed October 28, 1910. Serial No. 589,577.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES E. DURYEA, a citizen of the United States of America, and resident of Reading, in the county of Berks and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Internal-Combustion Engines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to engines of the internal combustion type wherein the explosive mixture is fired by an electric spark and more specifically to those in which the electric spark is produced by the arcing of a primary current due to the separation of electrodes within the firing chamber of the engine in a well-known manner and commonly known as the make and break spark.

The objects of my invention are to provide simple and reliable means for timing this spark and varying the timing at will and for operating the device, which makes the spark, commonly called an igniter. I accomplish these objects by'the mechanism described in the below specification and shown in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a plan, and Fig. 2 is an elevation both on dotted engine outlines, while Figs. 3, 4 and 5 are details of the important parts somewhat larger in scale than the former figures.

Similar letters refer to similar parts.

Through the wall of the combustion chamber of each cylinder are movable electrodes Y Y, Fig. 1. The inner ends of these coact with fixed and usually insulated electrodes X X, Fig. 2, generally connected with a source of electric current of proper kind and strength and passing through a suitable coil or coils. Sometimes this movable electrode is mounted in an igniter block which also carries the fixed electrode and thus permits the igniter to be removed as a whole. Whatever the well-known construction of the electrode and its support, I require that the outer end of the movable one be provided with a pawl Z against which my push rod W may contact at the proper time. This push rod IV is swung on a link V at a suitable point between its ends and the end opposite the pawl Z is carried by a crank P which is, in turn, carried by the cam shaft of the engine of the common four cycle type, as will bemore fully described later.

As the crank P revolves, the end of the rod WV which it carries describes a circle while the opposite end of the rod W describes a path somewhat elliptic. The upper portion of this elliptic path is curved from the sparker pawl already described and shown in Fig. 2 at Z and on this account the point of the rod W engages the pawl Z and carries it along some distance separating the inner end of the electrode from the insulated one X and producing a spark. I have shown or indicated this simplest form of breaking device simply for the purpose of showing my invention intelligently. The breaking device most commonly used and preferred is one in which when the pawl Z slips over the point of the rod W, the returning spring provided throws the pawl Z back rapidly and this strikes or carries the points of the electrodes apart quickly and forcibly and results in a superior spark. It is readily seen that the swinging of the pawl Z causes its point to describe an are opposed to the ellipse described by the point of the rod W so they are sure to separate after a short movement together. The nearly circular movement of the point of the rod W brings it again around up in front of the pawl Z and ready to operate it again at the next revolution of the crank P.

While my preferred construction is a two cylinder opposed motor as shown, this device so far as I have described it is suflicient to operate the igniter of a single cylinder engine. To operate the igniter of the second cylinder of the double opposed engine, I employ a second crank P at the opposite end of the cam shaft N. I have shown this crank P in Fig. 2 as opposed to the crank P but this is for clearness only. Such a construction would operate both igniters at the same time which is not a common. arrangement of the ignition parts of a double opposed engine. The preferred setting is shown in Fig. 3 where the cam shaft is assumed to have turned a half revolution from the position of Fig. 2. The crank P is up and moving toward the igniter of the left cylinder of the engine. Attached to it is a push rod S shorter than the rod W but swung on a link V in the same manner. To the end of the rod S is a second'one W hinged or jointed in a suitable manner and mounted on a swinging link It. The point of W connects with and operates the pawl of the igniter of the left cylinder in the same manner as the point of W operates the pawl of the right cylinder. These parts being behind the cylinder are shown in dotted lines except where they rise above the cylinder outline in Fig. 2 but are seen in full lines in Fig. 1.

It is quite evident that if the point of the rod IV is made higher by bending the rod IV or by other means, it will contact with the pawl sooner and separate from it later, thus changing the spark time while lowering the point will allow later contact and earlier break and change the spark time inversely. I provide an adjustment for the raising or lowering of the point of the rod IV or its counterpart l" in the device shown in Fig. 4:. The pivot T is made eccentric at one portion of its length and by turning this a half turn or less, the rod point is raised or lowcred. I show a lock nut for locking this pivot T in position where desired, so that the timing once right may be maintained, but it is evident that the head of this pivot T could be provided with a handle or wrench and it could be turned at any time desired to vary the spark timing. Both handles or wrenches could be connected so that T and T could be operated simultaneously and thus change both at once, if preferred I prefer, however, the spark changing arrangement shown in Figs. 1 and 3. As shown, the cam shaft N is hollow and pass ing through it is a square rod M. On the ends of this rod are fixed the cranks P P. Fitted to the square of the rod M is a cupshaped collar L which slides both on M and on N. In L there is an inclined or helical slot inwhich a pin K is located and fixed to the shaft N. It is evident that shifting the collar L lengthwise, the shaft N must, because of the inclination of the slot, cause it to rotate with relation to the shaft N and since the collar L carries the square shaft M, because it is provided with a square opening through which the shaft M passes, the shaft M must by the lengthwise shifting of the collar L be caused to change its position with relation to the shaft N and such change of relation will, of course, advance or retard the cranks P P and with the action of the sparking apparatus. To shift the collar L, a shifter fork K is used and provided with a head nut I. The nut can be loosened, the fork K shifted toward one end or the other of the cam shaft N and then the nut I tightened to maintain the sparking parts in the last given position. In Fig. 3 the shaded portions are parts of the casing or framing which carries the cam shaft and sparker parts shown therein, E being the cam which operates the exhaust valve and C the large gear which is fixed to the cam shaft and is actuated by a gear of half the size on the crank shaft, as is well known and indicated in Fig. 2.

While I have shown the shifter fork K as arranged for a fixed and generally permanent position, it is evident that instead of the nut I, this fork could be manipulated by a lever or similar means in the hands of the operator and so not be fixed but be under his control at all times if such an arrangement is preferred.

While ordinarily the pawl and the parts to which it is attached may swing freely if pushed in the reverse direction, as when the engine revolves backward, there are some constructions of igniter parts which do not permit this and to accommodate these I may provide the tips of the rods IN and IV with a hard or elastic wearing portion W screwed or bolted to the rod and forming the tripping portion. If this contact strip Vt strikes the pawl Z in the normal direction, it is supported by the tip of the rod W and is quite firm and unyielding, but if it strikes the pawl Z in a reverse direction, as when the engine inadvertently turns backward, it may be sprung away from the tip of the rod IV, as indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 5, and thus not damage any part of the mechanism. It is also evident that holding this elastic contact portion W away from the tip of the rod by a small wedge or any temporary or removable means will for the time being stop the tripping of the igniter mechanism.

lVhat is claimed as new is 1. In a gas engine, a hollow cam shaft, a polygonal rod passing therethrough and cranks carried by said rod adapted to actuate the igniting mechanism, in combination with a sliding sleeve on both the cam shaft and said rod and arranged to vary the position of said rod in its angular relation to said cam shaft when said sleeve is shifted longitudinally with relation to the cam shaft.

2. The combination in a gas engine, of igniters, a crank and push rods for operating the same, links on which said rods are swung between their ends, one of said push rods being jointed in order to permit the end of one rod-to rotate in a direction opposite to the end of the other, and an elastic tip attached to the end of one of said rods to permit a reverse movement of the engine.

3. In a double cylinder opposed gas engine, igniters located at the sides of the cylinders and an actuating mechanism consisting of a crank at each end of the cam shaft, a single push rod connecting one crank with its igniter, and a jointed push rod, with means for supporting one member thereof, connecting the other crank with its igniter.

l. In a double cylinder opposed gas engine, igniters located at the sides of the cylinders and an actuating mechanism consisting of a crank at each end of the cam shaft, a single push rod connecting one crank with its igniter, and a jointed push rod connecting the other crank with its igniter, said push rods being mounted on links.

5. In a gas engine, a hollow cam shaft, a polygonal rod passing therethrough, sparker-operating mechanism attached thereto, a shifting collar fitted to both the rod and shaft and slidable on both, with means for varying the relation of said rod and shaft to each other by longitudinal shifting of said collar, and means for shifting and fastening said collar at the will of the operator.

6. In a gas engine, an igniter, a revolving shaft and a push rod to convey motion from said shaft to said igniter, and an elastic tip on the outer end of said rod to permit a reverse movement of the engine in combination with a swinging link having an eccentric pivot whereby the position of the pushing end of the rod may be varied.

7 In a gas engine, a hollow cam shaft, a rod passed therethrough and carrying means to actuate the igniting mechanism, combined with means constructed to vary the position of said rod with relation to the cam shaft when the last-named means is shifted longitudinally with relation to said shaft.

Signed by me at Washington, D. (1, this 28th day of October, 1910.

CHARLES E. DURYEA.

Witnesses:

JAMES L. CRAWFORD, WVM. H. HUTCHERSON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

